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Saturday, 3 December 2011

When I first saw the name 'Powder Gate' or 'Powder Tower', I thought the word 'powder' in its name refers to the more feminine cosmetic stuff. I imagined it was a tower where the princesses would put on their makeup and peep through the tower windows to spot any young and handsome looking guy on the streets. After reading more on the details, only did I realise that its name was derived from the gunpowder that it stored during the 17th century. What a drastic shift from my wild imagination!

Its construction began in 1475 under the commission of King Vladislav II Jagiello. It was left unfinished when the royal family decided to move from the neighbouring Royal Court to Prague Castle in 1488. Construction resumed in 1592 and it was not until the construction from 1875 to 1886 that it took its present shape, which is a resemblence of the eastern tower of Charles Bridge.

Being one of the thirteen gates to the city of Prague, it retained its importance to the Bohemian kings until 1836 as every monarch would pass through this gate on his way to St. Vitus Cathedral for his coronation. Today, this 65-metre high tower serves as a high vantage point to watch the happenings in the Old Town of Prague.

The tower is adorned with statues of the Bohemian kings, patrons and saints. If you have the passion, it is not too bad a thing to stand on the street and identify each and every one of them.

I was lucky to have come across the 9th International Festival of Police Orchestras on 4th June 2011, and there was free band performance in the square itself. It was really a splendid moment for the live music that came alive with all the active participation from the spectators.

For the locals, and nowadays foreigners alike, the Old Town Square is a popular spot for pre-wedding or wedding photo shooting. I managed to witness one photo shooting during my visit there.

It is something like this that spices up our travelling experience, in particular for a lone traveller like myself.

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About Me

I am a simple person who enjoys the good things in life: travel, photography, music, food, movies and reading. I would like to share my part of life through my lenses. I hope you enjoy viewing it as much as I have experienced it. Thanks for dropping by. (^_^)